


Routine

by Oon_Jia_Wen



Series: Okikagu Week 2018 [2]
Category: Gintama
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, OkiKagu - Freeform, Originally Posted on Tumblr, was for okikagu week 2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:22:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24002782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oon_Jia_Wen/pseuds/Oon_Jia_Wen
Summary: Routines are fixed and when it breaks, it scares.___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I hate summaries, god.It was for 2018's Okkagu week. I already explained in the first work of this series why I'm posting it only now, so refer it back there.Hijimitsu is a bonus at the end, while Kouka is only mentioned. I hope whoever reads this enjoys it!! :-) :-)
Relationships: Hijikata Toshirou/Okita Mitsuba, Kagura/Okita Sougo
Series: Okikagu Week 2018 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1730941
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28





	Routine

Routines are fixed ways of doing things, a repetition of activities and it is the latter definition that suits their everyday lives better. Sougo has a fixed routine in life, starting out from waking up and trying to murder Hijikata, and then forward to patrol and meet the China girl in the park and have their daily brawl. He’d continue patrol afterwards, return to the Shinsengumi headquarters and try to murder Hijikata again. There are a few exceptions, like visiting Yoshiwara. It isn't daily, but still monthly, so he still considers it a part of his routine.

. . .

He walks into the park; over to the usual bench where he sits during his rests (it’s somewhat illegal since he doesn’t have the permission to rest then). He closes his eyes and pulls his red eye mask over his eyes, drowning out the surrounding noise. Minutes tick by as he waits for the loud stomping of footsteps to arrive, for the China girl to come and start a brawl. He waits for a moment longer and pulls off the eye mask when he hears nothing but silence, the routine itself so ingrained that even he knows when she is seconds late.

It isn’t like her, for her to not show up at this time. By right she would be strutting into the park all high and mighty, coming to kick off the bench as usual. Yet, she isn’t there, she’s off the routine they always go by. It nags at him that something isn't right, but he shakes his head, wondering why he's worried, after all, she nothing but an annoying acquaintance, right? He should mind his own business, whatever she is doing is not of his concern.

He gets up and walks the opposite direction of the bench when she still doesn't come and it breaks the routine.

. . .

He sits on the chair in his office, legs propped up against the desk, and questions her disappearance. He shakes his head, he's fussing over something that shouldn't concern him. He gets up and starts to pace around instead, much to the annoyance of Hijikata. “Oi! Stop that, you bloody idiot. It’s disturbing.” He glares at Hijikata, his red eyes glowing murderously in the light. Hijikata ignores the death glare, it's something the man is used already; and waves his hand at Sougo. “If something’s bothering you, go deal with it. Better you deal with it than not focused on patrol.”

And in an instant he's on his feet, striding down the street to Kabukicho, to the Yorozuya’s house, despite him telling himself no. He isn't half sure what he's doing when he reaches the bar below the Yoruzuya's house and he can see Gintoki leaning over the railing. The man is as if deep in thought, as much as someone like Gintoki could.

He doesn't call the man until Gintoki turns over, noticing Sougo after what seems like hours, grinning at him lopsidedly, hand raised up in the air as a greeting. “Souichiro-kun. You here to employ the Yorozuya's help to poison the Mayora’s dogfood again?” Sougo lets out a chuckle at the most recent memory of one of his antics at Hijikata, which had sent the vice president to the toilet for hours with a strong laxative.

He shakes his head in response to Gintoki's questions and asks instead. "Have you seen the China girl?"

His question sends an immediate effect in a ripple and the boss of the Yorozuya's face darkens immediately, dead-fish eyes troubled and weary. 

"She's not in the mood for any trouble today, Sougo."

It startles Sougo at the tone Gintoki uses; it's hard and resolute. He's more than taken aback at the protectiveness in his tone and the use of his name correctly.

"Did something happen?" He's just as surprised as Gintoki when he asks the question. The man observes him for a moment, sighing when a decision is made. 

'She's by the cliff near the beach, just don't tell her I told you." 

He turns to leave when Gintoki calls him and he looks back at the weary man. Gintoki opens his mouth to speak but decides against it and says instead. "Never mind. You'll understand when you see her."

He's even more bewildered at both members of the Yorozuya's behaviour, and it leaves more questions unanswered than answered.

. . .

The cliff is windy, the wind's fingers snagging at his hair, thrusting it in different directions as it grows stronger. He recognises the silhouette with the familiar vermillion hair, flying in the wind, sitting down back against him. He walks towards her, an insult preparing itself in his head and a tone cracks underneath his foot. She turns at the sound he is sure only he would have heard, and he scratches the thought that the girl is a familiar sight. Joyful eyes now a blue hollow, face impassive.

It scares him more than all he’s faced before, and her voice is like a sharp blade, slicing through the air. “What do you want?”

He’s frozen for a moment until he sees the flash of colour in the dark background, the vibrant bouquet of red poppies laid by the edge a popping contrast against the dark sea. He realises soon enough what the flowers are for when he connects the thought to his sister's grave. “Who are those for?”

Her eyes widen a fraction of a second before turning cold again, a tug at his gut at the foreign sight of the cold soul taking over a joyous spirit.

“For my mother.” His heartstrings are yanked at her answer, and it's bittersweet when he thinks of how alike they are in terms of death at this point. She turns back to the sea, staring into the empty space. It's then he notices the violent shaking of her shoulders at that moment, how she hides her face from his view. He sees pieces of himself in her, when his sister passed.

He steps forward, not entirely sure what he's doing, and she turns and sneers at him when she sees the look in his eyes, snarling. “I don’t need your pity or anyone else's'.” It dawns him that she's mistaken the message, and he surprises the both of them when his tone is soft and more so at the revelation that comes forth. "My sister, she passed last year."

She gnaws at her lip as she tries to think of an answer. He goes to sit next to her, both of them letting their feet dangle at the edge. 

“Do you what to talk about it?” She shakes her head fervently, her hands in fists by her side. He's shocked when she speaks then, voice void of animosity now. 

"What was she like?"

Bewildered, he asks, "My sister?"

She nods. 

He looks off into the distance, thinks back to the times when his sister was still alive. "She was the best person in the world; the kindest, most gentle woman I've ever had the pleasure of meeting."

He turns to her, asks. "What about your mother?"

The light in her eyes flares for a moment, at a memory of better days when their loved ones were around; he recognises the look, after all, he's sure that would be the look he would have thinking of his sister. "The strongest woman in the world, going through the constant absence of my papi, my brother fighting papi and then leaving, all the while having to take care of me as much as it turned the other way round in the end."

They don't ask each other anything afterwards, drowning in the silence. They don't have to say anything, they both know how the other is feeling, and know what the other wants in a time like this. So they both sit in silence, and look forward to the future in which they are sure to make those loved ones proud. 

End.

__________________________________________

A little bonus :-) :-) (because why not and I like Hijimitsu)

Hijikata stares out of the window into the empty night sky, thinking back to the day's events, back to the brat's actions. He knows the boy was unsettled by something he was quite certain was related to the China girl, she had been off to even him when they had bumped earlier the day. Although, he supposed, that Sougo had resolved whatever had happened when the boy came back in a much better mood, albeit much quieter than usual and not attempting a hand on his life.

He figured the peacefulness had been related to the boy's sister as well, Okita Mitsuba. If there were any regrets in life, he supposed that it would be her. The older sister of Okita Sougo had been the love of his life, despite the rejection he served her with when she had told him of her feelings. They both had understood why, but it didn't hurt any less. Sougo himself knew the reasoning behind it, understood it even, but still hated him for it; he didn't blame the boy, after all in sense, it was his fault that the boy's sister was never quite the same again. 

He hears a ruckus from outside and sees the China girl shouting for Sougo and the boy comes back out yelling back at her, bickering as they left. They didn't see him, but he saw the close proximity they stood next to each other; how she grabs the end of the boy's coat, and how the boy yanks her hand off his coat, holding her hand in his own, much to the girl's chagrin but now attempting to remove her hand.

He shakes his head in disbelief at how much Sougo had grown compared to the young child he had first meet, standing next to Kondo, watching him with hawk eyes. _You would have loved to see how your younger brother has grown. You would have delighted in finding out that your brother now has someone to love outside that shell of people he surrounded himself in._ It's a pity that Mitsuba passes on too young, too early.

He fishes for a cigarette, lights it with his mayonnaise bottle-shaped lighter. He inhales the smoke, blows it out, sighs. He envies the young couple, for he knew he himself would not have a chance like that in life any longer. _Yes, it is a pity he would no longer love anyone other than the woman buried six feet under, no one would ever hold a torch to her in his heart, he's certain._

But he doesn't see the shimmering figure behind him, almost transparent in the night; doesn't know when she sits down beside him, leans her ethereal head against his back throughout the sleepless night until morning comes.

End.


End file.
